Buying (then selling on) for profit?

[Steve Browning]

A music shop in Portsmouth recently got a mint Laney stack from a recent widow who asked if they would give her £250. She was given the full market price (rather more) and the stack was sold to a collector in Canada. It can happen - and in Pompey!

[fleabag]

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1492699901' post='3282504']
Or, following the same analogy. You visit an 80 year old who's husband just died and she's moving his stuff on. A vintage Fender, been under the bed for the last 50 years and because it's so old, she's after fifty quid for it. Would you seriously give her the £50 and think it's fine because she's happy she got the money she wanted for it.
[/quote]

Yup

Then as i would be in the better position to sell it for its true value, i could then share the ill gotten gains with the said 80 year old

[fleabag]

Or keep it all.

[Chris2112]

I used to be a soft-hearted fool. I thought then, and I still believe it to be the right thing to do, that we all cut each other a good deal here.

For instance, I was over the moon to get a used bass on here for a very great price. I won't go into specifics as I don't want to name names etc. The price was a real bargain because someone needed some cash quickly to pay for another toy.

I thought I'd got the deal of the century, so once I'd had my fun I decided to sell the bass on the boards for the same as I'd paid for it. I made one stipulation when selling, that is if the bass were to be sold via the boards again, share the good fortune of this great deal and honour the original asking price.

I was rather disappointed to see my good nature was ignored, when it turned up for sale a short while later for about twice what I had sold it for. I didn't make this stipulation to preserve some misguided sense of friendship between basschatters, but I did consider that we all benefit from good prices amongst each other, something that would soon slide if everyone became a mercenary.

I've never sold a bass or amp for a price that I wasn't happy with, but a few years ago when the forum was maybe a little smaller there was more a sense that we could all benefit from trading gear for good prices.

[GuyR]

Am I missing the point somehow?

How do you retain some kind of ownership or influence over something you have sold?

You have sold it not lent it. It is no longer yours. There seems to be an implication here that a buyer who sells on for more than they paid is somehow inferior to other forum users who were happy to take the cash in an open market but think it's somehow still their bass.

I paid £3500 many years ago for an all original custom colour 62 jazz bass. Should I offer it to a forum member for the same price if I need to sell it?

I get that is poor form for someone to pretend to be a buying as a player not a dealer. So give them bad feedback. A sale is a sale, so take a deep breath and move on.

[largo]

[quote name='GuyR' timestamp='1492719092' post='3282738']
Am I missing the point somehow?

How do you retain some kind of ownership or influence over something you have sold?
[/quote]

Football teams do it. Clubs can build in clauses that say they're entitled to a percentage of the resale fee of a player.

Interesting question, if someone offered a '66 Jazz for £1000 on Basschat with the clause of giving the seller 50% of the resale fee (if sold within 5 years) who would go for it?

[GuyR]

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1492873995' post='3283825']


Football teams do it. Clubs can build in clauses that say they're entitled to a percentage of the resale fee of a player.

Interesting question, if someone offered a '66 Jazz for £1000 on Basschat with the clause of giving the seller 50% of the resale fee (if sold within 5 years) who would go for it?
[/quote]

It's a brilliant idea. Why don't we all hire a lawyer each to represent us when we sell or buy a bass and have contracts stating how much we have to pay the previous owner on resale. When the buyer sells it to his relative the next day for a fiver more it will give us a new type of terrible injustice to bemoan.

[largo]

Not saying it's not complicated, just answering the previous post that asks how you do it.

[largo]

Business that rely on selling for profit is different, but why do individuals have to make a profit on their gear? Why is society about making the most money you can out of something? If everyone sold their old Fenders or Wals for what they paid for them, then surely they should be happy just getting their money back.

I'm certainly not into politics but I do think our economy is now built on this fixation with everything increasing in value, year on year.

[Guest bassman7755]

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1492936058' post='3284154']
Business that rely on selling for profit is different, but why do individuals have to make a profit on their gear? Why is society about making the most money you can out of something?
[/quote]

So you would be happy to get less "profit" from working then - I presume youl be going into work tomorrow offering to let your boss give you a 10% pay cut because after all life is no all about making a profit, I'm sure he will be delighted.

Cant believe weve had 7 pages of people bleating about how nasty it is to sell something for what its actually worth, dont get me wrong there nothing wrong with being generous but do it properly - sell your bass for whats worth then give some of the proceeds to charity.

Edited April 23, 2017 by bassman7755

[funkgod]

I have dablings in basses now and again, but i do make my intentions clear, for example on more expensive basses
i will offer a PX deal, works great for people who cant afford the cash up front to get the chance of getting what they want
and off loading something they dont need,
i get the sale quicker in two parts, and get the chance to try something i would not normally touch,
and sometimes make a bit more on the px if i dont like it, but the old owner is made aware it may well go up
for sale and maybe a bit more than the trade in deal, everyone happy.
I have just sold a bass as a px deal to a very nice chap in Ireland, a member on here, if i dont get on with the px he would not be surprised to see it for sale if i wanted to see the rest of my money

But yea have been miffed a few times when people are not as up front.

I remember on here a thred came up showing a nice goodfellow on ebay which i was looking at before the thred came up
now i was looking at it as a keeper to go in my little goodfellow collection, but one basschatter seems wanted it also stating it was the one he was always after and very much wanted it, so i let it go rather getting into a bidding war over it.
and so it sold and he won at a good price, then after about a week it was up for sale for 500ish more than was paid for it.

My lesson learnt right then.

now on saying that, he genuinely might not have liked it and decided to move it on, and im just bitter about not getting it but its not up to me to question his motives, because i would of done the same thing if i did not like it, would i have put it on for that amount more if it was worth that amount ?
would you of ??

Thats the big question.......
i think i would of done, maybe not as quick,

Now thats an ebay sale, fair enough, one mans loss, its another story when its from someone you know who is giving you something cheap cus they know you and you then sell right away to get the profit, thats taking advantage of someones good nature.

On the whole it does not happen very often on here within the chums of bass chat but it does now and again.
i have had some great deals through the kindness of some basschatters most of which i still have.

Edited April 23, 2017 by funkgod

[largo]

Sorry this thread seems to be going a little off track. I'm no economist but what exactly is inflation & what exactly determines it?

[Grangur]

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1492936058' post='3284154']
Business that rely on selling for profit is different, but why do individuals have to make a profit on their gear? Why is society about making the most money you can out of something? If everyone sold their old Fenders or Wals for what they paid for them, then surely they should be happy just getting their money back.

I'm certainly not into politics but I do think our economy is now built on this fixation with everything increasing in value, year on year.
[/quote]

I'm in the business of looking after my savings so I get to look after my family by not selling good stuff for silly money. Just because someone else is daft enough to get into a position where they're desperate for a sale and sell at a low, low price, why should I be forced to repeat the error?

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1492961387' post='3284399']
Sorry this thread seems to be going a little off track. I'm no economist but what exactly is inflation & what exactly determines it?
[/quote]
Inflation is generally the situation of prices going up over time.

Some of it happens this way: You want an increase on your salary because you like to think your employer should pay you more because of loyalty and increase in experience. So your employer does this. Because your employer (a baker making bread and cakes) needs to pay you more, he needs to increase the prices of the bread going to the shops. The shops, therefore need to increase the prices to keep their costs covered.

At the same time, the grocer has also had to pay more to his people - for the same reason as you got a rise. Also, their wives/mums need more money from them, because the price of bread has gone up.
You, in turn need more money a the price of groceries has gone up - all because YOU got a rise.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1492962689' post='3284422']
I'm in the business of looking after my savings so I get to look after my family by not selling good stuff for silly money. Just because someone else is daft enough to get into a position where they're desperate for a sale and sell at a low, low price, why should I be forced to repeat the error?


Inflation is generally the situation of prices going up over time.

Some of it happens this way: You want an increase on your salary because you like to think your employer should pay you more because of loyalty and increase in experience. So your employer does this. Because your employer (a baker making bread and cakes) needs to pay you more, he needs to increase the prices of the bread going to the shops. The shops, therefore need to increase the prices to keep their costs covered.

At the same time, the grocer has also had to pay more to his people - for the same reason as you got a rise. Also, their wives/mums need more money from them, because the price of bread has gone up.
You, in turn need more money a the price of groceries has gone u[b]p - all because YOU got a rise[/b].
[/quote]


so it's all largo's fault.

There.

[Grangur]

[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1492963603' post='3284432']

so it's all largo's fault.

There.


[/quote]

Yep; the banking crisis, inflation, world poverty, Donald Chump and Brexit.. everything.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1492963738' post='3284437']
Yep; the banking crisis, inflation, world poverty, Donald Chump and Brexit.. everything.


[/quote]

Next point in the agenda: the middle east.

Largo?

[fleabag]

Largo should take a pay cut. I've competely had it up to here with inflation

[Grangur]

STOP! Please. I'm drying my eyes now I've laughed so much.

You can't blame Largo for it all. Mrs Largo had something to do with it too.

(Thanks Largo for being a good sport)

[largo]

No problem, but the fact I've not had a pay rise in 4 years should mean inflation has remained at zero. And before you blame Mrs Largo, the fact she is disabled, had to give up her own business 10 years ago & is now also under threat of having benefits taken away or cut should actually mean you guys (& girls) will all be much better off than you were a few years back. No worries though, my sh*tty circumstances means inflation must be about -40% for the rest of you 👍

I'm still not going to take the blame for Trump though. That's taking it too far 😂

[fleabag]

Nah, we can't hang that one on ya, bud.

Fairs fair

[Grangur]

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1492980689' post='3284640']
No problem, but the fact I've not had a pay rise in 4 years should mean inflation has remained at zero. And before you blame Mrs Largo, the fact she is disabled, had to give up her own business 10 years ago & is now also under threat of having benefits taken away or cut should actually mean you guys (& girls) will all be much better off than you were a few years back. No worries though, my sh*tty circumstances means inflation must be about -40% for the rest of you 👍

I'm still not going to take the blame for Trump though. That's taking it too far 😂
[/quote]
Sorry to hear about Mrs L not being so well. life is, simply not easy for many folk.

You are right, of course, on the low inflation atm as many have had no rise for years. (At the same time, MPs took a 10% increase last year.) I was simply describing how the system works.

On the situation of basses, what isn't fair is when I scour the Marketplace for 'bargains', nab them before you've had chance to talk Mrs L round on you buying one in, as long as the other goes, and sell it for a small profit, just because I can.

So what I'm, effectively doing if I do this, is acting as 'the Bargain Police.

[largo]

Thanks for the sentiments folks & the explanation on inflation Sounds like nobody wins with inflation, I ask for a pay rise and if I get anything, I then pay extra for other goods & services and essentially I'm no better off. Back on course regarding the OP, I'm still off the (naive) mind that BC is a community and we all do our bit for each other.

[GuyR]

Apart from giving stuff away for peanuts I'm sure we all agree with you 😀

Edited April 24, 2017 by GuyR